Product Description
Spanish speakers can learn Brazilian Portuguese much more rapidly than any other language, and thousands of students have used Antônio Simões's text/workbook Com licença: Brazilian Portuguese for Spanish Speakers to make the transition between the two languages. Recognizing the need for a text that incorporates current cultural references and the latest language pedagogy, Simões now offers Pois não: Brazilian Portuguese Course for Spanish Speakers, with Basic Reference Grammar. Pois não contrasts Portuguese and Spanish, which accomplishes two main goals. It teaches the equivalent of one year of college Portuguese in one semester, three times a week, to Spanish speakers who also have a solid understanding of English. Additionally, the book serves as a basic reference guide to Brazilian Portuguese for the same audience. Pois não can be used by students in the classroom or by independent learners. Users of the book may focus on the drills alone, concentrate on both the explanations and drills, or use the book as a reference for consultation only. Answers to all of the exercises are included in the book. ACD containing recordings by native Brazilian speakers of dialogues that appear in the book is included. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

excellent book
Very complete book.It explains portuguese in great detail and it correlates it to Spanish very well.Grammar wise, it probably covers what you would need to know to study at the university level in Brasil.

Comprehensive but rough around the edges
Having already completed a good chunk of the textbook, I am very pleased with my progress; Simões usually cuts corners in all the right places, making frequent use of the numerous similarities between Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese.It is therefore imperative that you have a strong familiarity with the Spanish language, as the author does not take time to drill vocabulary and verb conjugations, and instead identifies cognates before moving right ahead.The book itself is written in English, though Simões's grasp of the language does leave something to be desired; already I've encountered numerous typos and grammatical errors.The author's awkward locutions can be an obstacle for comprehension, which makes a solid understanding of grammar an absolutely essential prerequisite.This book is dense!

The included CD with audio and video helps immensely with pronunciation and aural comprehension, though I've been finding myself having to navigate countless file folders on my PC to access the myriad audio and video clips.This brings up the book's major issue: a general lack of polish.The fact that Simões presents Pois não as a textbook for classroom use is laughable, not least because copious notes to the instructor are inextricably woven into the lessons, making it extremely difficult to digest (if not entirely off-putting) for students.Sometimes you just want the damn book to get to the point!One thing I do like about the book is its focus on informal, colloquial Portuguese as a counterpoint to the more academic, textbook variety, but Simões offers lots of colorful slang without defining it for the reader.This is an obvious disadvantage to any readers like myself using this book for self-study.

Complaints aside, I'm giving Pois não four stars because it does deliver; Simões teaches you to use Spanish as a tool to learn to speak Portuguese quickly, and Brazilian friends have already complimented me on my accent, undoubtedly aresult of Simões's early emphasis on Brazilian Portuguese phonology.This book will at times test your patience, but with determination you will come out on top with a very comprehensive understanding of Brazilian Portuguese.Unfortunately, Simões will need to release a subsequent edition of Pois não free of errors, complete with student workbook and improved audio and video (perhaps a DVD?) for the book to be at all viable for use in the classroom.

Not a Book for Beginners
Pois Não was written for English speakers of Spanish.It certainly is that but assumes an intimate knowledge of Spanish.It explains things in detail and concentrates on Brazilian Portuguese.For those just learning Portuguese, it provides more information than the person, perhaps, wants to know.It is recommended that an easier grammar be used to gain an initial knowledge of both Portuguese vocabulary and grammar.It is a good source to know the pitfalls of using false Spanish cognates.I was intrigued that the author pointed out that Portuguese speakers had an easier understanding of Spanish than vice versa as I have always found that to be true as well.I will use it as an excellent reference.

Full of useful content
Well done. Full of useful content, exercises and most of all a great command Brazilian Portuguese. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Not good for a Kindle Device
This dictionary is not usable on a Kindle device. There is no table of contents or search feature. The only way to look up a word is to page through the dictionary. I found it to be useless and deleted it off my device. ... Read more

Product Description

The organization of the Student Activities Manual (workbook, lab manual, and video manual) follows that of the main text, providing further practice of each chapter’s vocabulary and grammatical structures through sentence building and completion exercises, fill-ins, and art- and realia-cued activities. Reading and writing activities include strategies for improving reading and writing skills. The lab section of each chapter is to be used in conjunction with the SAM audio program recordings of varied listening comprehension selections. The recorded passages are followed by comprehension-check activities. The video manual includes activities that test students’ comprehension of the video materials and invite them to react to the experiences and opinions expressed by the speakers. A substantial appendix to both SAMs provides additional targeted practice for Spanish-speaking learners of Portuguese.

Customer Reviews (4)

Misleading advertising
I am no way implying that the product is bad - I am simply bringing it to people's attention before they purchase this that it is in fact BRAZILIAN portuguese and not European portuguese.Nowhere in this description or on the cover of the item does it tell you this.You have to infer it from the text on the back of the actual case: "Wondering how to make use of all that spare time on the plane while you're flying to Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, or Brasilia?" which you cannot see here on Amazon.All of the aforementioned cities are in Brazil.I just think it is wrong of the company not to plainly note on the package that this material is Brazilian portuguese.To me that is a lie by omission.

Good basics but takes a little longer than the flight
It's Ok for learning basics, greetings, numbers, etc. I started listening on my daily commute several weeks before going to Brazil. The flight from Miami to Sao paulo was 8 hours and that wouldn't have been long enough. So unless you're a much faster learner than I, don't expect to learn even the basic greetings "in flight."

So many language tapes, so little time
Go to any full-service bookstore and have a look at the language section.It has now reached mind-boggling proportions and how does one choose one producer from another? It is not easy and usually we purchase language tapes only to find them a bit inadequate.

The above statement is, of course, the key to being happy with your acquisition. None of these tapes are going to teach you the language, particularly not when they advertise themselves as being able to get you speaking reasonably proficiently in the course of a trans-Atlantic plane trip.

Take them for what they are worth;most Europeans are so pleased to have Americans attempt to speak the language rather than just speaking louder in English that your efforts will be rewarded.Walk into the cafe in the morning and say "hello" to the assembled crowd in Portuguese, and you will shortly be family.

Great Way To Learn Portuguese on the Quick!
This is a very handy way to pick up very simple, conversational Portuguese if you have an hour to spare by working with a booklet and a very well produced cd.The sound quality is very clear and good as well.No substitute for a classroom setting but otherwise good for a quick lesson on the run. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Uma PORCARIA!!! It is a CRAP!!
Uma POrcaria, as palavras sao escritas erradas, não tem índice, não dá p entender as explicações e significados. Comprei e acabei deletando p não ocupar memória, pois é MTO ruim!!!!

good
É uma boa pedida, mas seria interessante também comprar um livro como "A ENERGIA DO SILÊNCIO"A energia do silêncio e o poder de concentração dos segredos não revelados (Editora Murano) (Portuguese Edition) e sua tradução para o inglês "THE ENERGY OF THE SILENCE". Assim, comparando as traduções é possível aprender mais e melhor.The energy of the Silence and the power of concentration of the secrets not revealed (Murano Publishers)

Good and Bad
This would be a wonderful reference if it were the complete two volume work. Unfortunately, it only contains the English to Portuguese part, and then only about half of the alphabet.

Also, just because of the format, it can be difficult to understand where one entry begins and another ends.

There are several instances of this book on Amazon. I do not know if they are all the same. ... Read more

Product Description
From ordering sardines in Lisbon to making new friends in Evora, it helps to speak some of the native tongue. Rick Steves, bestselling author of travel guides to Europe, offers well-tested phrases and key words to cover every situation a traveler is likely to encounter. This handy guide provides key phrases for use in everyday circumstances, complete with phonetic spelling; an English-Portuguese and Portuguese-English dictionary; the latest information on European currency and rail transportation, and even a tear-out cheat sheet for continued language practice as you wait in line at the Gulbenkian Museum. Informative, concise, and practical, Rick Steves' Portuguese Phrase Book and Dictionary is an essential item for any traveler's mochila. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Muito Bom!
"Voce e a minha melhor recordacao." Rick goes beyond taxis and menus to teach us to say "You are my most beautiful souvenir" (voh-say ay ah meen-yah mil-yor reh-kor-dah-sow[ng]) and other great lines.

We also learn that "thank you" is "obrigado" (o-bri-gah-doo) when spoken by a male but "obrigada" (o-bri-gah-da) when spoken by a female. Most books just say "obrigado" and leave it at that.

Format rivals content in helpfulness: type is plain, clean, black & white, well spaced; pages are easy to turn.

Obrigada, Rick!

Entertaining and Minimally Helpful
I recommend bringing a pocket dictionary with you. While this was entertaining (there are funny phrases interspersed) and gave a brief look into culture, when we needed certain words they were missing.

Pronunciation guide was very helpful. Also helpful to have the full phrases so you can just show the book to someone and they understand what you are tying to say.

The book notes that vegetarians will have a hard time finding options but we noticed quite a few sections marked "vegetarian" on menus.

Very adequate
I am Portuguese and purchased this booklet,as a "jump start" reference for my daughters who don't speek the language, but want to go to go spend the summer in Portugal to learn it.
The packaging is excelent. It fits perfectly in an average jacket pocket. I also believe that if you take a litle time to familiarize yourself with the layout of information you will find every phrase/word you will need. I just wish the author had used native Portuguese speekers to do the phonetic interpretation of the words for it is clear it was done as an English speeking person hears not a native Portuguese.
If you are planing a tip to this country, this is a good resourse, but don't wory to much you will be fine; except for the older or or "non educated" population everyone speeks enouph English and will be eager to be of help. Have a fantastic time!

Rick Steve's Helped Us Enjoy Paradise
Rick Steves' Portuguese Phrase Book & Dictionary allowed my husband and I to enjoy the paradise of the Azores islands without worrying about the language barrier.We were able to order from menus, find bathrooms, talk to our taxi drivers, and understand responses when we asked questions.Having the pronunciation, dictionary, phrases, and street signs sections of the book were great.He seemed to cover everything we needed.The humor made for some fun reads and we would consult the book whenever we had time to kill, just for fun.I highly recommend this one for travel to the Azores.

EXCELLENT!!Must have travel companion, long live Rick Steves!
This is a must have for travelers!We just spent a week in Albufeira at Praia da Oura and we took this book with us every time we left our resort room.Literally didn't leave home without it!Rick Steves tells you absolutely EVERYTHING, from how to tell the maid that those empty Fanta cans are not trash but souvenirs to telling the waiter/waitress that you have food allergies.

What's really good about Rick Steves' books is that they have everything you need and nothing you don't.Everything I needed to know how to say, I was able to find in this handy little book.What I also really liked about Rick is as thorough as he is, he manages to inject some humor into his books to make sure you are paying attention (we had several good laughs while reading this book to pass the time in airports and on the train from Lisbon to Albufeira).Because you never know when it might come in handy to let your server know that you only eat insects and after that meal you may need to tell the taxi driver that if he doesn't slow down, you'll throw up.;-)

Happy travels! ... Read more

Product Description
A standard of Brazilian Portuguese language instruction. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (17)

Loving Brazil
This book is superbly clear and complete. The lack of a key to exercises is not as much of a problem as I thought it would be as the exercises are clearly based on the same or a few previous lessons.. A great start in reading and writing Brazilian Portuguese.

A Grammar of Spoken Brazilian Portuguese
I am a teacher of Portuguese and I think that this book is the best for the students who already know how to speak the language but have a problem understanding the grammar.This book will take them to the Upper Intermediate Level or even to the Advanced Level in Portuguese.I recommend this book as the book which will wrap up the Portuguese Language.

Review of "A Grammar of Spoken Brazilian Portuguese"
Good text but the print is quite small and difficult to follow.Introduction was difficult to follow.

Good book but written 22 years ago
This is a good book, but it was written 22 years ago, and language, especially oral language, changes a a lot in that kind of time.Even used it is over 20.00 on Amazon, and I am not sure if it is worth that kind of money.However, the basics of spoken Brazilian in grammar are in this boo, and I do not know if there is anything of a lower price that has that kind of information.

I like Pimsleur myself, also, but some people cannot learn anything that way.You might want also to check out Byki by Transparent language, which now has almost any language you might want to learn.

For an example, in English, "No problem" has now evolved for younger speakers in the USA to mean "thank you".I used to see this as rude, as if it were a problem to help me or something. But this is because I am an old f**t and did not grow up using "No problem in this way"

Easy Brazilian Portuguese
Very efficient textbook. The first chapter is really an introduction with the different phonetics of the portuguese language (and believe me, they are very different!). Then it starts with basic vocabulary words that start get you going into portuguese. The only problem is that it is definitely more effective if used in class to get the words right. If you try to learn portuguese on your own just using this book, you need to be very gifted. ... Read more

Product Description

Available with student learning packages at the instructor’s discretion, this separate booklet includes answers to all discrete and short answer exercises in both the Brazilian and European versions of the Student Activities Manual, so students can monitor their own progress.

Product Description
This Portuguese phrase book contains useful phrases for both business and pleasure. The book includes basic grammar, a pronunciation guide and additional vocabulary. ... Read more

Product Description
"Working Portuguese" enables English speakers with no prior knowledge of Brazilian Portuguese to develop the basic communication skills and cultural knowledge needed to visit Brazil and to function in a work environment in which Portuguese is spoken. This language program presents not only all the situations and grammar normally covered in an elementary Portuguese textbook but also includes situations set in a business context in every lesson. Major features of this title are as mentioned below: twenty-four lessons, the last four concluding with a special independent project in which the student applies the language to his or her area of professional interest. Clear objectives for acquiring language skills, grammar, and cultural understanding. Lessons cover the important basics normally covered in any beginning Portuguese textbook such as introductions and greetings, counting, making travel plans, taking public transportation, and asking for directions. Lessons cover business tasks such as negotiating a contract, presenting a new product, writing a business memo-all in Brazilian Portuguese.Lessons provide dialogues and vocabulary lists for reading and listening, grammar, cultural reading, and interactive homework. Portuguese-English and English-Portuguese glossaries offer additional help with vocabulary. Course can be combined with affordable online access to self-grading exercises (available through Quia.com, $24.95 per student for 9 months of access) Student's Book. This title includes MP3 tracks of vocabulary, dialogues, and audio exercises on CD. Lessons are valuable to the classroom student as well as self-directed independent learners Teacher's Edition. It also includes a CD-ROM with all MP3 tracks of vocabulary, dialogues, and audio exercises found on the student's disk. The CD-ROM also provides quizzes and a midterm, materials for special activities, and approximately 300 supplementary PowerPoint slides for classroom presentation. There are online teaching features at Quia.com. This title features: instructor-managed class activities and exercises; monitoring of student progress; and, customized grading options online. Students can complete exercises online, submit their answers electronically to their instructor, and receive automatic feedback.Teachers can also use Quia templates to build their own exercises or use exercises developed by other instructors to provide added help for students. Motivated self-directed learners can also access the self-grading online exercises at Quia.com (no instructor feedback will be provided).System requirements include: Student's Edition Textbook/MP3 CD (Mac and PC); CD drive on a computer or conventional CD player with MP3 capability; MP3 player, such as iTunes, RealPlayer, or Windows Media Player; Speakers Teacher's Edition Textbook/CD-ROM Mac and PC; CD drive on a computer; MP3 player, such as iTunes, RealPlayer, or Windows Media Player; speakers; Adobe Acrobat Reader PC; Windows XP; Microsoft Office 2000 or higher with Service Pack 3 installed (Word and PowerPoint are needed to view and edit some files) Or, to view the PowerPoints only, download Microsoft PowerPoint Viewer 2003 or higher; and, Fonts for PowerPoints - Arial Unicode (included in all editions of Office 2000/XP/2003) Mac System requirements also include: Microsoft Word, version Office 2004 or higher; Microsoft PowerPoint, version Office 2004 or higher (Word and PowerPoint are needed to view and edit some files); or view the PowerPoints as PDFs; Fonts for PowerPoints - Arial (included in Office 2004 and higher) Interactive Exercises on Quia (Mac and PC); Computer with Internet access, preferably a high-speed connection; Java-enabled browser - Internet Explorer 6.x or higher, or Firefox 1.x or higher; The program QuickTime is needed to play audio; Speakers or headphones to hear audio; and, Microphone to record answers or responses. ... Read more

Product Description
The number of Spanish speakers in the United States has increased markedly in recent years, and this is especially true of the college population. At the same time, interest has been growing among this latter group in the study of the Portuguese language. Com licença!, a textbook for the teaching of first-year Brazilian Portuguese to college students familiar with Spanish, thus appears at a propitious time. Students with native or near-native proficiency in Spanish can learn Brazilian Portuguese much more rapidly than they would learn any otherlanguage. Antônio R. M. Simões has done extensive research on the pedagogy and theory of language, which he has linked directly to the planning and production of this textbook. The book combines such innovative and traditional approaches as constant comparison of both languages in all aspects from pronunciation to cultural components; exercises and gamelike activities to elucidate the differences between Portuguese and Spanish; and the use of Brazilian songs, popular sayings, and poems for their "sound value" as well as to illustrate Brazilian cultural values. Com licença! can be used in either regularly paced or highly intensive programs. Fred Ellison, professor of Portuguese at the University of Texas, says, "The like of Simoes' book, so fresh and inviting in its approaches, has not been seen before in our field." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (18)

Book in perfect condition

Service was fast and the book, although it was used, it was in perfect condition... thank you

Glad I got my textbook in time
The book was cheaper than in bookstores and I got it in good time so I could have it for class.

Excellent
Excellent book for those students that speak spanish and are learning how to speak brazilian Portuguese!

Great, for Conversation and Culture
As an English speaker fluent in Spanish, I found this book very helpful when I was first learning Portuguese. For bilingual Spanish-English students, picking up the Portuguese language is relatively easy, yet sometimes tricky, as you can be tempted to rely on Spanish (for example, when telling someone that the meal is "esquisito").This book helps keep you from falling into the traps, and bridge the gap from "Portuñol" to actually speaking Portuguese.It just will not work for people who don't have a command of Spanish.

I enjoyed the use of music, idiomatic expressions and a general flavor for Brazilian conversation: great tools for the person looking to pick up some bits of Brazilian culture.I don't think it's an ideal tool for business or academic Portuguese; those in search of hard-core grammar or writing composition would need additional resources for the development of more formal vocabulary and intense verb conjugation.

Read Description First
This book was written for people who, in addition to English, speak Spanish at a high-intermediate to near-native or native level (obviously not geared towards monolingual Spanish speakers in Mexico, Spain or Argentina).The description mentions it was created due to a rising interest among University Spanish-speaking individuals in the Portuguese language!That being said, it won't help you learn much Spanish, although it could be used to review some things in Spanish but at the same time introduce you to Portuguese.It assumes you have a working knowledge of grammar in Spanish.That way you'll be able to easily transfer your knowledge from Spanish into Portuguese (Brazilian), which is the author's original intent.

The reason it's written with English instructions is because the author is using English as a bridge between Spanish and Portuguese to illustrate Portuguese pronunciation.Portuguese pronunciation is much more complex than Spanish and the student already knows many sounds existing in English (an equally rich language).This means that s/he didn't know that some Portuguese sounds also exist in English and all that needs to be done is transfer this information into the target language, Portuguese.This is how this method works.It uses English as a bridge!If you didn't understand this when you read the description of the book, then you absolutely missed the point and should not have "wasted" your money.

Just read the description first.It says it right there.Don't waste your money if you are not a Spanish Speaker who knows English.For Spanish speaking monolinguals there are far better Spanish-Portuguese methods.

There are some spelling mistakes, indeed, but that does not justify your not buying it.The benefits are greater (provided you meet the criteria specified in the book description).

As? que si quieren usar este libro y sacarle alg?n beneficio . . . a estudiar espa?ol!? um livro ?timo. ... Read more

Product Description
This program provides an ample, flexible, communication-oriented framework for use in the beginning and intermediate Portuguese classroom. It takes a highly interactive approach towards presentation and practice of the language and it integrates cultural information and exchange at every stage of instruction. Ponto de Encontro is the first Portuguese language textbook that allows the instructor to choose to teach either Brazilian or European Portuguese, while at the same time offering language learners a rich variety of insights into cultural, social and political realities of the entire Portuguese-speaking world, composed of more than 200 million speakers in eight countries on four continents. ... Read more

Product Description
Korlai Portuguese (KP), a Portuguese-based Creole only recently discovered by linguists, originated around 1520 on the west coast of India. Initially isolated from its Hindu and Muslim neighbours by social and religious barriers, the small community lost virtually all Portuguese contact as well after 1740. This volume provides a treatment of the formation, linguistic components, and rapidly changing situation of this exotic Creole. The product of ten years of research, Korlai Creole Portuguese provides an in-depth diachronic look at a language that is now showing the strain of intense cultural pressure from the surrounding Marathi-speaking population. Framed in Thomason and Kaufman's 1988 model of contact-induced language change, the author's analysis contains numerous comparison with sister Creoles, apart from medieval Portuguese and Marathi.The book examines the following areas: phonemic inventories, phonological processes, stress assignment, syllable structure, paradigm restructuring , paradigm use, lexicon, word formation, semantic borrowing, loan translations, grammatical relation marking, pre- and postnominal modificaiton, negation, subject and object deletion, embedding and word order. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A fine guide to a highly unusual language community
I edited this book for Clancy Clements, a highly accomplished Indiana University professor, and had a great time doing it. It's a thorough look at a fascinating phenomenon: the survival of an exotic form of Portuguese in an isolated area of India for hundreds of years after the Portuguese colonials had been kicked out (c. 1740).

As servants/slaves of the Portuguese, starting about 1520, the ancestors of the people living in present-day Korlai learned enough Portuguese to communicate with the soldiers, missionaries and colonists, grafting the new words onto the grammatical structure of Marathi, their original language. This hybrid became the native language of their descendents--that is, a creole--which survived because of an unusual set of isolating barriers. The people of Korlai were separated from other Portuguese speakers by their low caste; from others of their caste by the fact that they were Catholics rather than Hindu or Moslem; and from the evolving life of India as a whole by geography, as Korlai sits on a small spit of land that until recently made access to the mainland very difficult.

A thoroughgoing linguist, Professor Clements devotes ample attention to such matters as phonemic inventories, phonological processes, stress assignment, syllable structure, paradigm restructuring, paradigm use, lexicon, word formation, semantic borrowing, loan translations, grammatical relation marking, pre- and postnominal modification, negation, subject and objectdeletion, embedding, word order, that sort of thing. But he is also very interested in the human side of the phenomenon. He devotes particular attention to the intense cultural pressure being placed on the language now that better transportation and a new school have increased opportunities for Korlai's inhabitants to visit and work on the mainland. Professor Clements made many visits to Korlai over a ten-year period, and his fondness for the people comes through in the book, as well as his concern that their language may vanish forever.

Professor Clements frames his discussion by considering theories of contact-induced language change and by numerous comparisons with sister creoles (on which he is an expert), medieval Portuguese and Marathi. ... Read more

Product Description
This course book contains 25 thematic and carefully-graded units on reading, writing speaking and listening, and covers a variety of everyday topics, progressing from introducing yourself to writing a CV. The emphasis is on communication throughout, with important language structures introduced through dialogues on the accompanying recording. Exercises are included to enable you to practice the new language and monitor your learning as you go, and tips on grammar and pronunciation also feature. Cultural information should help you get the most out of the language and understand what makes the Portuguese tick. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

For tourists and residents
This is a very good course in many respects, but one of its strongest points is its wide range of application. This is a course for the absolute beginner but also for the more advanced learner. I used it initially as a tourist and now I am using it (the more advanced units) for further study. It starts with the usual hotel, food, shopping, etc for the tourist. Then it moves on to more advanced language, for example, what you need when visiting the doctor or coping with a car accident. On a happier note, you learn what to say when you go to the hairdresser (men and women) and how to make social conversation at a party. You learn how to write a letter (social and formal) and how to make a phone call, not simple matters in a foreign language. At a further stage, this course really caters for the resident. You learn how to open a bank account, apply for a job, go about buying or renting a flat or a house. You even learn how to tell your domestic help how you would like the service done - cooking, house cleaning, clothes washing and ironing, feeding your pet. Nothing seems to be missing. Extremely useful indeed. A course I am very happy to recommend.

My first choice
I first bought this course to give myself a good start before joining classes. Little I knew at the time that my class teacher was going to recommend this course. I am glad we agree on the choice.

The course is very easy at the beginning, just right for an absolute beginner. As you move on through the units, new information always relates to something you have learnt before. This has a double effect, it helps ou remember what you already know and sits comfortably on it.

The book deals with all sorts of topics you need. You start by saying hello and learn the basics for food, travel, accommodation, emergencies. In the subsequent units you go through all this again at a slightly more advanced level. And so on. I quite like this method.

You get lots of help in a number of ways. Pronunciation is one of them. The sounds are explained in the units, there is a detailed pronunciation table in the appendix and everything is also on the recording. You can't go wrong!

There is also another thing I quite like in this course, the way grammar is introduced. Grammar is there, but it is not overbearing. It is very clearly explained, it helps you understand what you are saying and the way you are saying it, but there are no boring grammar drills. That's good!

Masterly Teaching
This course is very practical and efficient. You learn exactly the sort of thing you need when you go to the country, starting with passport control and customs on your arrival, finding your way in town, etc. Every vocabulary and structure you learn you can visualize yourself in a situation where it will be of practical use to you.

Also useful is teaching you neutral Portugese you can use in any country where the language is spoken. This is very important in my case. Work often takes me to Rio de Janeiro in South America and Lisbon in Europe. All-purpose Portuguese suits me fine.

What I most admire in this course is how it goes straight to what you need to know. It seems to guess the problems you may have and provide the solution before you get into difficulty. Dr. Cook's method is very skilful. She must have many grateful students.

This is a good Portuguese course
I know how difficult it can be to find a good language course. I have found one. I'm actually quite enthusiastic about it and want to share my views with other learners.

Why is this course the Portuguese course for me ?

This course focuses on practical, every-day usage of the language and does not waste your time with too much detail on the grammar. The subjects covered are very useful for travellers and people intending a longer stay.

This course assumes no pre-knowledge of the language and explains even the most basic phrases and vocabulary step by step. The units build well on each other.

The structure of each unit is very logical: (1) dialogues you can read and listen to (2) good vocabulary help with the meaning of every word in the dialogues (3) question practice on the dialogues (4) pronunciation guide (5) the phrases used are clearly explained (6) activities at the end of each unit and revision units with more activities.

This is truly a course you can use to teach yourself. It gives the learner plenty of support and moves at a rate that can be taken on board by a self-taught student. Just one warning: the book alone won't do. You need the audio for the dialogues, pronunciation, and activities.

This is an excellent course for the money. It's enjoyable and you can go at your own pace. It gives you a quick fix in the first units, then progresses to further learning.

This is a good, solid course. This course is helping me. I hope my comments will help you. ... Read more

Product Description
Comprehensive Portuguese (Braz.) I includes 30 lessons of essential grammar and vocabulary -- 16 hours of real-life spoken practice sessions -- plus an introduction to reading.

Upon completion of this Level I program, you will have functional spoken proficiency with the most-frequently-used vocabulary and grammatical structures. You will be able to:

* initiate and maintain face-to-face conversations,

* deal with every day situations -- ask for information, directions, and give basic information about yourself and family,

* communicate basic information on informal topics and participate in casual conversations,

* avoid basic cultural errors and handle minimum courtesy and travel requirements,

* satisfy personal needs and limited social demands,

* establish rapport with strangers in foreign countries,

* begin reading and sounding out items with native-like pronunciation. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (29)

Speaking of Portuguese...
The Pimsleur Brazilian Portuguese course is so easy, and all the words are spoken clearly.I am thoroughly enjoying each lesson, and I am confident speaking what I have already learned.

Pimsleur is the best language course out there - bar none!
This is not my first experience with Pimsleur courses, and I keep coming back.Why?It's because the method ensures memory of all words and sentence structure through daily repetition, and it teaches conversation from lesson one.With Rosetta Stone, as with most other language audio courses, you will learn how to say "red car" or "blue fish", but you will struggle to actually make conversation from what they teach you.With Pimsleur, you can know enough after the first 30 lessons to get around in a foreign country.After 3 courses (in the languages they offer more than an introductory course), you can actually be fluent!If you want to learn this language, there simply is no better way that I know of than to use this course.My only gripe about Pimsleur is that they don't have full courses in more languages.I'd buy more!

How to Buy this course and what to expect
I think this is probably the best available audio course in Portuguese.The drawback is its expense.Here's how to get around that:Go to Audible.com (Amazon's books on tape store) and sign up for a one-year platinum membership for $[...].That gets you 24 credits to redeem for audio books.Each level of this course costs 6 credits.So you can get the entire course for about the price of buying level one on CD and still have 6 credits left over to buy other books.Moreover, I think most serious students could probably skip level one (you may have to spend more time on level two, but everything in level one is reviewed there).In that case you could get a gold membership at Audible (which gives you 12 credits) and get both levels 2 and 3 for $[...]. (Cancel the membership afterward if you don't want it to renew.)

Here's what to expect after you go through the course (all 3 levels).You are going to have a solid foundation in pronunciation and an intuitive feel for some basic grammar.You would be able to get around in Brasil, (check into a hotel, ask someone to call you a taxi, tell the driver you want to go the airport, etc.).And you will be able to express a fairly wide range of ideas to people who speak only Portuguese.BUT, you will not be able to understand much of what native speakers are saying to one another (if you are lucky you will usually be able to understand what the conversation is about). And you are not going to be able to have sophisticated conversations with native speakers.

The reason is that when you finish this course you will still have a very limited vocabulary.The course is going to teach you a few hundred words, and to really be proficient you probably need to know three or four thousand plus verb forms.That is not a knock on the course, and I don't know of anything better out there.It's just that learning a language is not so easy.It would be nice if there were levels 4,5, and 6 of this course focused on building vocabularly, but there are not.So when you finish this course your best option for continued learning is probably to speak as much as possible with native speakers and learn from them and/or to find some Portuguese reading material and use a dictionary to look up the (many) words you don't understand.This course will get you to a place where those methods will be useful.

Pimsleur Portuguese I
I have tried many different methods to learn a foreign language and Pimsleur has the best approach I have yet found.They start out simple and build from there.Prior material is reviewed in several subsequent lessons.The trick is to work on the lessons daily and speak out loud - loudly.(I do it in the car to/from work so I am not disturbing others, although I probably look like an idiot.)

Delivery was prompt, within a week.The only minor wrinkle was that they said it shipped by UPS, but it actually shipped Fedex and they gave me a Fedex tracking number.

I haven't tried Rosetta Stone yet, but am holding off because it will tie me to a computer and because of the expense.Another plus, Pimsleur can be used in the car and on an MP3 player.

Pimsleur Portuguese I language casette tapes
I think these tapes are great.They're very thorough, and I can carry them with me since they don't require a computer.The voices are easy to understand.

I am on the last lesson (#30) today.Occasionally the conversations are really repetitive and so the learning rate seems a bit slow, but I suppose that's the nature of learning a new language.I think the vocabulary and phrases they teach will be fairly useful when I need to try the language "for real".

I have not tried any other language learning products (like, for instance, Rosetta Stone) to compare. ... Read more

Product Description

The organization of the Student Activities Manual (workbook, lab manual, and video manual) follows that of the main text, providing further practice of each chapter’s vocabulary and grammatical structures through sentence building and completion exercises, fill-ins, and art- and realia-cued activities. Reading and writing activities include strategies for improving reading and writing skills. The lab section of each chapter is to be used in conjunction with the SAM audio program recordings of varied listening comprehension selections. The recorded passages are followed by comprehension-check activities. The video manual includes activities that test students’ comprehension of the video materials and invite them to react to the experiences and opinions expressed by the speakers. A substantial appendix to both SAMs provides additional targeted practice for Spanish-speaking learners of Portuguese.

Customer Reviews (2)

Great book for learning portuguese
Lots of activities, access to audio exercises... overall a good book, I learned lots from it.

A Must if You Are Using the "Ponto de Encontro" Textbook
From 16 to 27 pages of activities for each chapter in the textbook, filled with consistently reinforcing material step-by-step and from involved activity to activity, you can not go wrong with this book. The textbook itself is 570 pages of instruction while the activity book has 442 pages. I have studied Russian as well as Irish and I have never seen, for either of these languages, an accompanying activity book in a series that would be as extensive and almost as lengthly as the original textbook. (Well, V Puti, a Russian set does this and is the only exception!) I have thumbed my way through the book (I am an English as a Second Language teacher by profession) and it is pedagogically sound in all elements and the activities are relevant to the language learning itself. It does not (as do some activity books) get too carried away with introducing way too much new vocabulary that is not relevant to the tasks and the textbook and guides the student through everything quite well.

I would suggest that, along with the "Brazilian Student Activities Manual to Accompany 'Ponto de Encontro': Portuguese as spoken and used in Brazil" (Remember that there is also the "European Student Activities Manual for 'Ponto de Encontro': Portuguese as a World Language" for those learning Portuguese as spoken and used in Portugal) you should also get the "Answer Key to Accompany Brazilian and European Student Activity Manuals for Ponto de Encontro." If you are studying on your own without a teacher, this will be quite valuable. In many language sets, answer keys only come with the "Teacher's Edition" and this is a welcome addition to the set and can be purchased as "new" for only $8.00.

I also have purchased the DVD of dialogues in Portuguese that includes the same dialogs with different speakers in a disk that includes all of the dialogues in both Brazilian and European Portuguese. Not only are the speakers native to each country or region, they are also filmed in each respective area, giving you the feel of each region for the Portuguese that you are studying. The activity manuals also include activities to go along with the videos on the DVD!

The completeness of this entire set is impressive as they have left no stone unturned: textbook (that teaches either Brazilian or European Portuguese, or you can learn BOTH, per your preference), separate activity manuals for each of the two Portuguese language types, an answer key in one inexpensive edition that covers both activity manuals as well as the companion oral/visual language DVD for BOTH separate as well as equal Brazilian or European Portuguese, the DVD of Portuguese speakers talking about each of the topics, chapter by chapter, of the textbook for BOTH separate as well as equal Brazilian or European Portuguese, and a 3-CD audio set for the textbook itself with a very nice and clear index listing of every track with each chapter and section. They don't stop here either! They also have an on-line site for learning Brazilian and European Portuguese with audio, interactive activities, flashcard system and tests that, when completed, you can choose to send to your teacher, to the teacher's assistant, to a friend and to yourself in plain text or HTML formats!

I had read the reviews on here about this set and none of them even went so far as to describe the entire set as a unit and how they are there to help you to really learn Brazilian or European Portuguese should you decide to use all of the resources available.

Now, this entire set, new, can be rather expensive. I purchased the CD, DVD, and book used here on Amazon. I only bought the Brazilian Portuguese Activity Manual and the Answer Key as new items. This helped me to cut the overall cost of all new materials by a rather tidy sum such that I could purchase the ENTIRE set! Even at full cost for new here on Amazon, I really feel that this entire set is a bargain as you will definitely learn, through diligence and following the program that this set offers, to speak, to listen to, to read and to write Portuguese like a native (high intermediate to low-advanced) by the end of the series. Of course, beyond this set (things that you should also do as you are working with the set), learning can be achieved through regular reading of original texts, watching movies, watching Brazilian or Portuguese TV on-line, finding a Portuguese "friend" or two, or three or whatever on-line who uses Skype for regular conversational practice and (if you are lucky, as am I) you may also find a friend who is actually a language teacher who can help you with Portuguese grammar, colloquialisms, pronunciation and can provide more "cultural notes" that make learning any language more fun, entertaining, and immersive!

Get the set, be dedicated, use it well, use Skype - don't be shy!, and do the work so that you can really achieve the great success in learning Portuguese (Brazilian, European or both) that this set offers!

... Read more

Product Description
Designed to help beginners develop a good grasp of basic, practical Portuguese, this unique audiocassette program teaches the vocabulary and grammar needed to enjoy a visit to Portugal. Learners get plenty of practice listening and speaking thanks to the interactive nature of the dialogues and book exercises. 3 cassettes. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

The President would not say Donde
This course is an odd mixture of formal and colloquial language and is too much Lisbon centred. It is full of colloquialisms like bica for black coffe and the like, you use in Lisbon but not everywhere in the country, let alone other Portuguese speaking countries. Pronunciation is not always the best standard. Donde is something careful speakers do not say, they say De onde (this means from where or where from in a question). At the other end of the scale you have very careful speech, like that of the President of Portugal, too advanced for a beginners course. This is neither a good beginners course nor a suitable advanced one. I would not use it with my students (I teach evening classes). ... Read more

Product Description
This bilingual dictionary and travel-oriented phrasebook focuses on the Portuguese of Brazil, which is spoken by more than 170 million people worldwide.

• Over 6,000 total dictionary entries
• Travel tips and cultural information
• Colloquial Brazilian expressions and terms
• Comprehensive grammar and pronunciation sections
• Perfect for travelers, businesspersons, and students
... Read more

Customer Reviews (13)

Great supplement for early learners
This book has received some bad reviews for being incomplete, but i think those reviews are unfair. if you're a beginner like I am and you're already taking lessons and/or exposed to spoken Portuguese, this book can serve as a solid cheat sheet to refresh your memory and also serves as a quick reference for common grammar or pronunciation questions that come up in everyday conversation. Don't expect to learn Portuguese from this book (or for that matter, from any book) alone.

I am especially happy to have this for Kindle because I mark the word lists and tips about grammar rules that I frequently need to use (and often forget). I can also easily search for definitions when needed.

Between this book, practicing with my friends and an online course I feel like I'm off to a decent start. If you have the same resources I highly recommend including this book.

Brazilian Portuguesse Dictionary
This Dictionary goes above and beyond! It has more than I expected, and also
has a quick refrence guide, phrasebook content. This is a must have!

Poor excuse for a dictionary
Although this book does offer useful information on Brazil and the language, it is a sad excuse for a dictionary. More like a vocabulary list than anything.
The worst aspect of this book is its description of Brazilian pronunciation; it bears absolutely no resemblance to the way Brazilians actually speak (no mention of the softening of the T and D in certain situations, like the final d in saudade, for example).
Very misleading and not worth the money.


Very helpful with building vocabulary
I bought this dictionary for a Brazilian friend who already speaks and reads some English. It is most helpful for filling in the gaps in his vocabulary, but does not include many pronunciation or usage details. It is great for when he is reading and runs across an unfamiliar English word, and simply wants to know what the word means. For pronunciation and usage, a dictionary such as the Larousse Concise Dictionary gives more information. I gave my friend both dictionaries, and he mainly uses this one, then refers to the Larousse for details when needed.

Don't waste your money
This book is just an advanced version of a travel phrase book. It does not give you the pronunciation guides, or how the words would be used in a phrase. I was very disappointed with this book. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (12)

Really disappointed with pronunciations
I was really looking forward to getting this but after scanning it and looking up about a dozen phrases I am already disappointed with the pronunciations. I totally agree with James C. Norton's review given above. I learned Spanish before Portuguese and this book gives pronunciations in Spanish, not Brazilian Portuguese. They are similar languages in most ways but NOT the same! It's handy for looking up particular phrases but you need to already be familiar with how you pronounce all the letters, otherwise you either need to double check pronunciation in a dictionary or sound a little silly. Handy book but there are better out there.

Say It In Portuguese
Pretty good phrase book WITH pronunciation guide for each word.Unfortunately, it is the pronunciation of Portugal instead of Brazil, but once one learns those differences, it works reasonably well.

Won't have you sounding like a native, but a great phrase book
I found this book incredibly useful on my recent vacation in Brazil.Most important, the book is small.It's tiny enough that you can fit it into any pocket easily.Secondly, it is extremely well organized.It is divided into sections on topics like "Taxi", "Restaurant", "Bank", each containing phrases that are usually extremely useful, and is also cross-referenced by a comprehensive index.A telling detail:the items of food you might see on a menu in Brazil are in Portuguese alphabetical order, making it very easy to translate whatever food item you are considering.

There are a couple of drawbacks:some of the vocabulary in this book is quaintly out-of-date (for example, there in an entry for "mercurochrome" in the drugstore section, and the automobile section tells you the Portuguese for "Please add water to my battery"), and the pronunciation may be how they read the Brazilian TV news in the 1950s, but is nothing like what people sound like in Rio today. I have a feeling that if you used the pronunciation the book recommends you would generally be understood, but people would think you very funny!However, if you become familiar with contemporary Brazilian pronunciation, it is easy to "translate" the book's suggestions into the way people actually speak.First you would need to find out how Brazilians actually speak, and for this purpose (and generally for anyone with the time to learn a bit more than quick phrases) I would strongly recommend Thomas's "A Grammar of Spoken Brazilian Portuguese".

A great phrase book
As the title says, it's not a dictionary, just a phrase book.However, the index at the back helps you find the words you need, so it can, in a pinch, serve as a basic dictionary.It's nice and small and easily fits in a pocket.I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to friends.

worthless
this book is about the size of a deck of cards but not as thick.I looked at it for about 2 seconds and have not used it since. ... Read more